At GPI Shoes we examine the progress of the various professional sectors on their way to digital transformation. In addition, we have also focused on the concept of Footwear Industry 4.0 in each sector and the possibilities offered by technological innovation in processes such as the manufacture or distribution of safety footwear.
In this case, the focus will be on a specific sector such as footwear. Its position as a fashion product means that in the coming years it has the possibility of having good forecasts for development in intelligent technology.
The characteristics of the product itself, and the characteristics that customers require of these garments, offer many possibilities for innovation which, thanks to technology, SMEs and large companies are gradually adding to their day-to-day work.
Adoption of the main benefits of Industry 4.0 in the footwear industry
The footwear sector, like most professional sectors, is incorporating into its factories the innovation and technology of the so-called Industry 4.0, which offers so many advantages and opportunities:
Interconnectivity
The so-called Smart factory has the ability to interconnect devices, products and professionals through technological innovation and software, which provides a great benefit for a sector such as footwear, which has a great diversity of products and materials.
Real-time monitoring
Smart factories can also control many of their developments in real time, knowing at all times which product is in which phase.
Big data
The monitoring itself, together with other data reception processes, provides the company with a large amount of information about the operation of the factory that can be used to improve processes, detect and correct faults.
Predictive maintenance
Thanks to interconnection or Big Data, factories 4.0 have a mechanism for forecasting the maintenance needs of their areas, thus reducing human or technological involvement in maintenance, which is fully optimised thanks to the reduction in costs involved.
Production and shipping speed
Process acceleration boosts the ability of plants to generate and ship faster. Without doubt, shipping times have undergone a real evolution in recent years and technology even makes it possible to predict what kind of products and in what quantity they will be purchased at what time of the year.
Intelligent stock
Another of the advantages of Industry 4.0 that the footwear sector has also acquired is the new concept of stock. The monitoring and tracking of stock also benefits from the prediction of demand.
With this, it is not necessary to have such a high quantity of products in stock, something that reduces the stock and the resources and infrastructures assigned to it.
Diversification and customisation
Finally, thanks to the knowledge of consumer habits through Big Data, Smart Factories can produce much smaller batches of products and thus achieve a much greater diversity of products, increasingly personalising the demand for each consumer.
Innovation applied to footwear manufacturing
Focusing on the peculiarities of Industry 4.0 in the footwear sector, factories include technologies that provide increased value to their products and will have a strong presence in the future.
And a clear example is the use of 3D printing in footwear. Because smart clothing has reached the feet, and 3D printing has found its main presence in soles and insoles for the moment.
Another of the technologies landing in the footwear industry is the Internet of Things, with the interconnection between shoes and other devices. Thus, we should not be surprised if our smartwatch collects data from our footwear to know the steps we have taken, the characteristics of our footprint or the wear of the material of our footwear that requires us to renew it.
In this commitment to the integration of technology in footwear, the connections between brands and start-ups and technology-based companies that are experts in smart clothing are fundamental.
What do you think about the technological advances in the footwear industry? Leave us your comments
Remember! If you are looking for a strategic partner for the design, development and production of your high quality custom-made safety footwear to protect your workers from all occupational hazards or for distribution, GPI can help you.
